Good guys finish last, but good things are worth the wait
What a terrific third installment in this Nicole Dykes trilogy, which began with SOULMATES and continued with FATE. Ryan was such an intriguing character that he deserved his own book, and Ms. Dykes has definitely delivered! My review discusses some details. Many other reviews have mentioned some of this, but just in case, slight spoiler alert.
I actually thought the re-telling of Maddy and Ryan's aborted relationship was perfectly done, and not derivative at all. I really, really liked Maddy in the first two books, and I still do...but REBOUND definitely gives a fresh window into her interactions with Ryan. It's not that she's unlikeable, but more that as the readers, we can see so plainly what poor Ryan can't -- that Maddy and Jake are meant to be a couple, and Ryan will be left out in the cold. It takes a skilled author to create such multiple dimensions/viewpoints to the same story, and Ms. Dykes has done this beautifully.
Lindsay is a perfect HEA for Ryan. In some ways they both know how it is to be "pre-judged," whether because of your background or the fact that you're a jock. I had to warm up to Lindsay a bit, but by the end of the story I was rooting for them all the way. And in full disclosure...I lived in Auburn, Alabama, for two years, and this is my home state, so I appreciated how important Ryan's scholarship was, and why it was so valuable.
I'll be watching eagerly for future novels from Nicole Dykes!